Despite the discovery of additional bodies floating in the lagoon yesterday
bringing the death toll to around 200, most of whom are believed to be
muslims from the north, according to sources, there appears to be an
emerging consensus that the democratisation process must continue, meaning
that amends to the initial selection procedure for presidential candidates
be effected in time for the legislative elections. Either a constitutional
amendment to Article 35 which contains the nationality clause is effected
prior to the December elections or an outright declaration of the
eligibility of Ouattara under the same Article. The latter seems more
feasible, given the  requirements for amending the Constitution, and this
approach that Ouattara will insist upon since he claims that both his
parents are Ivorians and thus eligible under the current Constitution. On
the other hand, to seek an amendment to the Article would mean an admission
that he was ineligible under the current Constitution. The meeting between
Ouattara and the President Gbagbo is an implicit recognition of the RDR
leader as the presidential standard bearer of his party. Thus it appears
that a formal recognition is the final step in the process that Ouattara and
the international community are working toward. Be it as it may, the country
may be on the road to national reconciliation and eventual revitalization of
a battered economy, provided all parties refrain from being intransigent and
the security forces return to barracks under strict civilian control to
avoid further macabre killing of innocent civilians.  The international
community's latest shift in emphasis should be reassuring to current
investors and an encouraging development for those wishing to do business
with Cote d'Ivoire.

Sidi Sanneh
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&


   PARIS, Oct 28 (AFP) - The European Union and the United States called on
Ivory Coast's new President Laurent Gbagbo to solidify the west African
nation's return to democracy by ensuring fair elections in December's
legislative race.
   In a statement by the French presidency, the EU urged Gbagbo, sworn in as
Ivory Coast president on Thursday, to "guarantee the democratisation"
demanded
by the opposition, barred from taking part in last Sunday's presidential
elections that brought Gbagbo to power.
   Legislative elections in Ivory Coast are set for December 10, and the EU
statement said it was "essential that the process of returning to a
constitutional and democratic order takes place in incontestable and
verified
conditions of transparency and fairness, enabling all the country's
democratic
forces to take part" in achieving civil peace and national cohesion.
   International opinion has been divided over recognising the legitimacy of
the new authorities in Ivory Coast, with several leaders calling for a
re-run
of the presidential poll.
   France, the former colonial power and currently EU president, was at
first
virtually alone in backing Gbagbo.
   However, the United States, after initially calling for a re-run, has
said
it will work with the new president -- although President Bill Clinton's
administration did officially recognize the new government.
   "We recognize countries, not specific governments or individuals," said
State Department deputy spokesman Philip Reeker. "We're prepared to work
with
governing authorities in Cote d'Ivoire; Gbagbo was inaugurated yesterday and
we will deal with him and his government."
   However, Reeker stressed that the United States awaited "the restoration
of
democracy" and issued a "call to all parties to cooperate towards that end
...
that the voices of the disenfranchised be heard."
   The election that ushered Gbagbo into power drew less than 40 percent of
Ivorian voters, who joined in an election boycott after the Supreme Court
barred the vast majority of candidates from standing.
   "The elections were flawed from the outset because they excluded
political
parties," Reeker said. "It is important that the parliamentary elections
take
place on December 10."
   The chairman of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), Togolese
President
Gnassingbe Eyadema, said if Ivorians accept Gbagbo's new government, "we
must
join them."
   "What we want is to avoid bloodletting. That must end, and Ivorians must
fraternally return to working hand in hand to develop country," Eyadema said
in Paris, where he was meeting with French President Jacques Chirac.
   "Ivory Coast doesn't affect only Ivorians, it affects the entire
sub-region" because of its economic influence, he said.
   France's former prime minister Alain Juppe warned that if Ivory Coast
fell
into a long-running conflict, it would be catastrophic.
   "They must do everything today to lower the temperatures and bring the
main
players back to the table," Juppe said.
   "Find a rule to the game that will allow the organization of
(legislative)
elections, that's the way to go," he added.
   bur/gs/gj


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